NACE 90.0 – Creative, Arts and Entertainment Activities | Public Tenders

Definition: NACE 90.0 covers creative, arts and entertainment activities — including performing arts, theatre productions, concert events, visual arts and the operation of arts facilities. In public procurement, this group is mainly relevant through municipal cultural funding, art purchases and the commissioning of event service providers.

Legal basis: NACE Rev. 2 (Regulation (EC) No 1893/2006) · Last updated: January 2026

What does NACE 90.0 cover?

NACE 90.0 (Creative, arts and entertainment activities) classifies businesses and self-employed individuals providing artistic production, cultural events and entertainment services — an area with significant public demand from municipalities, states and cultural authorities.

Group 90.0 within Section R (Arts, entertainment and recreation) is broken down into several classes:

Contracting authorities in this area are above all municipalities and cities with their own cultural operations, states with state stages and cultural institutions, federal authorities for national cultural institutions, and public-law institutions.

Public Tenders: Activity area NACE 90.0

Cultural services of public contracting authorities are regularly tendered — from sound systems for city events to the purchase of works of art for public buildings.

Typical types of contract

• Cultural events and city festivals: Planning, delivery and technology for municipal festivals, concerts in public spaces, city anniversaries
• Art purchases and commissioned art: Procurement of sculptures, paintings and installations for town halls, schools and public squares (Art-in-Buildings programmes)
• Stage and event technology: Lighting, sound and video technology for municipal theatres and event halls
• Cultural mediation and educational programmes: Concept development and delivery of cultural programmes for schools and social institutions
• Artistic design services: Design of public spaces, murals, temporary art installations
• Event management for authorities: Organisation of representative events, receptions, commemorations

Thresholds and procurement procedures

For service contracts, an EU threshold of EUR 221,000 (central authorities) or EUR 443,000 (other public contracting authorities, as of 2024/2025) applies. Many art purchases fall below these values and are awarded in national procedures. Design contests under §§ 78 ff. GWB or § 160 ff. BVergG 2018 are a common instrument in the cultural sector.

Relevant CPV codes for NACE 90.0

CPV codes (Common Procurement Vocabulary) enable targeted searches for tenders in the cultural sector on TED and on national procurement platforms.

Current tenders with these CPV codes are available on TED (Tenders Electronic Daily) and on national procurement platforms.

Who is NACE 90.0 relevant to under procurement law?

Public contracting authorities

Cities and municipalities are the most important contracting authorities in the cultural area — they operate municipal theatres, organise city festivals and purchase works of art for public spaces. In Austria, federal institutions such as the Burgtheater or the Vienna Philharmonic award contracts in the cultural area. In Germany, states are major contracting authorities as operators of large cultural institutions (state theatres, state operas, state museums). Public broadcasters (ARD, ORF) also commission artistic productions.

Companies and bidders

Providers in this area are frequently individual artists, small cultural businesses, event service providers and technical event service providers. Typical requirements for tenders:

• References: Evidence of comparable events or art projects
• Professional qualification: Evidence of artistic or technical training
• Technical equipment: Ownership or availability of stage, lighting and sound equipment
• Insurance: Event organiser liability, art insurance for loans

Frequently asked questions on NACE 90.0 and public tenders

Are art purchases subject to procurement law?
Yes, above the relevant thresholds, art purchases and commissioned works are also subject to procurement law. Below the thresholds, national budgetary principles (economy, transparency) apply. Design contests are a particular procedure for artistic services.

How are artistic services tendered?
In addition to open and restricted procedures, negotiated procedures without prior publication are possible for artistic services if only a specific artist can be considered for artistic reasons (§ 14(4)(3) VgV; Article 32 of Directive 2014/24/EU).

What is "Art-in-Buildings" in the procurement context?
For public construction works above a certain contract value, the federal government and many states require a portion of the construction sum to be used for works of art in public spaces. These contracts are generally awarded as an art competition or by direct award.

Does the exemption for "special services" apply?
Cultural and artistic services may fall under the rules for "special services" (Annex XIV of Directive 2014/24/EU) and are then subject to a simplified regime with simplified publication obligations.

Related NACE groups

• NACE 91.0 – Libraries, archives, museums: Cultural institutions with strong public-tender relevance
• NACE 93.2 – Other amusement and recreation activities: Leisure facilities, city festivals, recreation facilities
• NACE R – Arts, Entertainment and Recreation: Parent section

Last updated: January 2026
All information is provided without guarantee. For legally binding advice, please consult a law firm specialising in public procurement law.